Downtown Richmond's identity is made up of the 20,000+ millennials, young professionals, empty nesters and Gen Z's who call downtown home.
The Many Faces That Make Up Downtown
Downtown Richmond's residential growth has helped drive city-wide population growth in Richmond and signals a fast-changing and vibrant downtown, one that not only has a working population in the daytime but also activities and people around throughout the day.
51% of downtown Richmond homeowners are white and 49% are non-white.
86% of downtown Richmond's residents are renters
Today, 40% of downtown Richmond’s residents are between 18-24 and 30% of residents are between 25-34.
The downtown Richmond residential population is well-educated with 57% having a Bachelor’s Degree or higher – up from 40% in 2010 and 40% are enrolled in college
On average, downtown workers earn more than workers citywide or regionwide, largely due to the concentration of knowledge jobs. 60% of downtown workers earn at least $3,333 per month, compared to 54% in the city and 49% in the region.
The median income increased from $33,500 in 2015 to $39,000 in 2018.
About 37% of households downtown and in the city report middle-class incomes.
On average, downtown residents emit 25% fewer emissions than city residents.
Downtown Richmond Market Data
Downtown has seen outstanding residential growth since 2000. Population more than doubled, rising from 9,800 in 2000 to 20,600 in 2018, for a 110% increase during a period when the city grew by only 13% and the region by 24%.
The private sector employs 66% of jobs in downtown Richmond (50,910 jobs) and knowledge industry jobs account for 35,100 jobs.
Richmond leads the list of “established downtowns” in the IDA Study with 63% of Richmond’s knowledge industry jobs, relatively higher than the downtowns in Seattle (58%), Minneapolis (58%) and Miami (52%).
The IDA study finds that not only does Richmond’s downtown account for a significant proportion of the region’s jobs, but the city’s core experienced the region’s biggest percentage spike in residential population growth since 2000.
As a regional jobs center and leader in workforce development, downtown brings more than 40,000 workers from surrounding counties into Richmond.
About a quarter of downtown workers (18,835 employees) live in the city, but the remainder come from across the region.